MiSTer FPGA Forum

I have a Digital I/O board which I would like to test out on a CRT that has a SCART socket. What do I need to achieve this?

From what I have read it seems to involve getting a HDMI to VGA adaptor and then a VGA to SCART cable. However I have also read you need specific cables. It's very confusing - for me anyway

If there is any chance of links to the products (UK) then that would be greatly appreciated.

https://ultimatemister.com/product/mist ... ect-video/

With SCART you gotta be a bit careful, don't buy just any VGA to SCART, there are some pins under voltage and stuff like that.

The one Esoteric linked seems ok. But it obviously has a DAC (AG6200) built in.
If you want to go the way you described (HDMI to VGA adapter and then cable) so you can choose which DAC to use (I recommend Icybox adapters), buy this one:

https://www.retroupgrades.co.uk/product ... ter-cable/

Alf wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 9:00 am

With SCART you gotta be a bit careful, don't buy just any VGA to SCART, there are some pins under voltage and stuff like that.

The one Esoteric linked seems ok.
But if you want to go the way you described (HDMI to VGA adapter and then cable), buy this one:

https://www.retroupgrades.co.uk/product ... ter-cable/

I'd rather go straight from HDMI to SCART if possible but that cable from ultimatemister is too pricey (and then postage on top of that even). Are there any similar cables preferably available in the UK?

Fuzzball wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 9:03 am

I'd rather go straight from HDMI to SCART if possible...

This solution is more clean but you are forced to use the DAC that is in the cable.
If you look at this table, the AG6200, that is inside that cable, is the worst:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... edit#gid=0

Here is the Icybox adapter that has, according to this spreadsheet, a great DAC:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/335414510071?e ... R4KKp7uBZA

However, there is one problem...it does NOT have an audio port. I don't have any IO board in my setup but if you don't have an audio output on yours, that's a problem.

Alf wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 9:10 am

Here is the Icybox adapter that has, according to this spreadsheet, a great DAC:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/335414510071?e ... R4KKp7uBZA

However, there is one problem...it does NOT have an audio port. I don't have any IO board in my setup but if you don't have an audio output on yours, that's a problem.

I find that spreadsheet rather misleading. It only concentrates on picture quality but then many people complain that the Icybox keeps losing sync when changing resolution. For Amiga core, for example, that could be quite annoying.

Well the spreadsheet does focus on image quality and nothing else, so I wouldn't call it misleading.
I'm using that same Icybox adapter on a BVM and never noticed any problems though.

Thanks. I am considering switching my setup to use an Analog IO board instead as it works out about the same price as buying 2 cables anyway.

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing.
I have enough of this and I'm buying an IO board.
But this is another rabbit hole, lol.

Alf wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 9:47 am

I'm using that same Icybox adapter on a BVM and never noticed any problems though.

Did you try the out-of-sync examples mentioned in the thread?

The thing with these Direct Video dongles is that there always seems to be some sort of trade-off, so you just need to consider what is most important to you (price, stability, accuracy, etc).

Personally I started using my old AG6200 dongle again since my IO board flopped and its lower gamma honestly doesn't bother me that much. I think it's maybe more pronounced in (some) console games, and I'm mostly using microcomputers. Also, the brute force hack here is cranking up the brightness

I wouldn't mind buying another dongle, but where I am now they are hard to find. Plus, if they really have syncing problems it'd probably drive me up the wall since Amiga is my most used core.

Yes I bought the Mister first and foremost for Amiga. I think an analog board just makes a lot more sense for me than all this messing about with DACs and VGA to SCART cables that may or may not produce satisfactory results.

Fuzzball wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 10:18 am

Yes I bought the Mister first and foremost for Amiga. I think an analog board just makes a lot more sense for me than all this messing about with DACs and VGA to SCART cables that may or may not produce satisfactory results.

Definitely a better solution - though now also a bit of a rabbit hole. DV dongles are a good one if you're on a budget and don't want to build the whole stack.

akeley wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 10:25 am

Fuzzball wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 10:18 am

Yes I bought the Mister first and foremost for Amiga. I think an analog board just makes a lot more sense for me than all this messing about with DACs and VGA to SCART cables that may or may not produce satisfactory results.

Definitely a better solution - though now also a bit of a rabbit hole. DV dongles are a good one if you're on a budget and don't want to build the whole stack.

Would you mind expanding on the "rabbit hole" comment just so I know what I would be getting myself into

I already have a digital full stack so assumed it would just mean replacing the digital board for the analog one (remembering to switch back the dip switch on the DE-10 board that had to be changed for the digital board). Also unfortunately having to change my case.

Fuzzball wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 10:38 am

Would you mind expanding on the "rabbit hole" comment just so I know what I would be getting myself into

Nothing bad, just these kinda dilemmas: https://www.misterfpga.org/viewtopic.php?p=87408#p87408

Simplest solution is to get the new analog board that supports 24-bit and go from there. Before that existed, direct video was better. The only downside is you can't have dual SDRAM and VGA out at the same time. I don't have dual SDRAM and never felt the need to get it so far. Each person has different needs/wants and it may or may not affect you.

thorr wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 10:28 pm

... you can't have dual SDRAM and VGA out at the same time.

You can but you lose the ability to output HDMI and VGA at the same time, at least on Misteraddon's and Retrocastle's boards because they use the external HDMI bridge.
But the official board doesn't offer this option.

https://coolnovelties.co.uk/coolnovelti ... on-systems

try this.. when you get your i/o board.. it works fine for me on my panasonic 28" crt.

Well I got the cables for direct video as, to cut a long story short, I had by complete chance found a CRT TV in the loft and couldn't resist trying it out to see if it worked (I had nothing else to plug into it).

Bought a cheap Cableader brand HDMI to VGA adaptor for £5.99 and a VGA to SCART cable and am completely blown away by the results. I've played some Chaos Engine on a CRT for the first time in 32 years!

the amiga core does look great on a crt.. no doubt. seeing that 1.2 boot hand screen is very nostalgic

bazza_12 wrote: ↑Thu Jun 13, 2024 7:02 am

https://coolnovelties.co.uk/coolnovelti ... on-systems

try this.. when you get your i/o board.. it works fine for me on my panasonic 28" crt.

Yep that's what I use, then you get uadio through the TV, otherwise you won't.

thorr wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 10:28 pm

Simplest solution is to get the new analog board that supports 24-bit and go from there. Before that existed, direct video was better. The only downside is you can't have dual SDRAM and VGA out at the same time. I don't have dual SDRAM and never felt the need to get it so far. Each person has different needs/wants and it may or may not affect you.

Thanks for that. I am going to look to get the new analog board. I don't think I am too fussed about dual ram so the dual display output solves my one real issue with CRT which is not being prepared to lie my CRT sideways for arcade cores. I have a LCD on my desk sitting alongside the CRT but I didn't want to have to keep switching cables between the two or having to keeping swapping config files. So dual output solves this issue.